Winemaker Notes
Blend: 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Cabernet Franc
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Aromas sweet red berries and black berries. Dried flowers. Asphalt. Dried earth. Terra-cotta. Hints of jam. Full-bodied and layered with firm tannins that frame the wine. So structured and fresh with a solid center-palate. Great length. 78% cabernet sauvignon and 22% cabernet franc.
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Wine Spectator
Big and rich, with cooking spice accents to the concentrated dark cherry, plum tart and allspice flavors. Offers an unctuous creaminess to the mocha accents in the midpalate, with a long finish that's filled with savory richness. Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.
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Wine Enthusiast
A very attractive nose delivers aromas of sweet cherry, blackberry, and plum combined with hints of cardamom and paprika. This well-crafted, full-bodied blend from Cachapoal Valley offers rich flavors of cherry, plum and peppercorn. Gripping tannins add a nice texture to the mouthfeel, while lively acidity keeps it well balanced and energized leading to a long flavorful finish. It has good aging potential.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
2017 was the warmest vintage in recent times, and they picked the grapes for the 2017 Vik earlier to keep the freshness and the alcohol level to 14.4%. They lowered the new oak to 60%, where they matured the wine for 23 months. This has more in common with the 2019 than the 2016 and 2018 but keeping the balance and poise, quite a triumph over the difficult conditions of the year. It was produced with 78% Cabernet Sauvignon and 22% Cabernet Franc. It finishes dry and with abundant tannins.
With hundreds of red grape varieties to choose from, winemakers have the freedom to create a virtually endless assortment of blended red wines. In many European regions, strict laws are in place determining the set of varieties that may be used, but in the New World, experimentation is permitted and encouraged resulting in a wide variety of red wine styles. Blending can be utilized to enhance balance or create complexity, lending different layers of flavors and aromas. For example, a red wine blend variety that creates a fruity and full-bodied wine would do well combined with one that is naturally high in acidity and tannins. Sometimes small amounts of a particular variety are added to boost color or aromatics. Blending can take place before or after fermentation, with the latter, more popular option giving more control to the winemaker over the final qualities of the wine.
How to Serve Red Wine
A common piece of advice is to serve red wine at “room temperature,” but this suggestion is imprecise. After all, room temperature in January is likely to be quite different than in August, even considering the possible effect of central heating and air conditioning systems. The proper temperature to aim for is 55° F to 60° F for lighter-bodied reds and 60° F to 65° F for fuller-bodied wines.
How Long Does Red Wine Last?
Once opened and re-corked, a bottle stored in a cool, dark environment (like your fridge) will stay fresh and nicely drinkable for a day or two. There are products available that can extend that period by a couple of days. As for unopened bottles, optimal storage means keeping them on their sides in a moderately humid environment at about 57° F. Red wines stored in this manner will stay good – and possibly improve – for anywhere from one year to multiple decades. Assessing how long to hold on to a bottle is a complicated science. If you are planning long-term storage of your reds, seek the advice of a wine professional.
Well-regarded for intense and exceptionally high quality red wines, the Colchagua Valley is situated in the southern part of Chile’s Rapel Valley, with many of the best vineyards lying in the foothills of the Coastal Range.
Heavy French investment and cutting-edge technology in both the vineyard and the winery has been a boon to the local viticultural industry, which already laid claim to ancient vines and a textbook Mediterranean climate.
The warm, dry growing season in the Colchagua Valley favors robust reds made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenère, Malbec and Syrah—in fact, some of Chile’s very best are made here. A small amount of good white wine is produced from Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.